


the start of all things

by JasperMeadows



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: F/F, Fluff without Plot, Other, Romantic Fluff, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Wedding Night, Weddings, basically think of the fluffiest wedding vows ever times ten
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-16
Updated: 2021-02-16
Packaged: 2021-03-18 00:00:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29480337
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JasperMeadows/pseuds/JasperMeadows
Summary: What I think Kuvira's wedding vows might sound like.An accompaniment to Chapter 6 of Sour Cherry but can also be read alone!
Relationships: Kuvira (Avatar) & Reader, Kuvira (Avatar)/Reader
Comments: 11
Kudos: 22





	the start of all things

**Author's Note:**

  * For [TopKnotsHairpin](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TopKnotsHairpin/gifts).



> I'm one day late but I wanted to write some Valentine's Day fluff that was separate from Sour Cherry (since I have quite a few requests to catch up on)! 
> 
> Huge thanks to the wonderful @TopKnotsHairpin on Twitter for the lovely suggestion ❤️ I wouldn't have thought to do something like this and it was so very sweet to write!

The moment she steps out, you wonder if it’s possible for all the air in the world to rush into your body at the same time it hurtles out. You forget that breathing is supposed to come naturally — it’s an instinct. You don’t have to _think_ about breathing because your body should _know_ how to do it. 

But right now, as you stand before Kuvira in all her resplendence, you find yourself focusing too closely on the motion of inhaling around the knot in your throat. 

You can’t recall a moment where you watched Kuvira and didn't feel the weight of the universe and beyond collapse into your chest and explode all over again. Of course, you’ve experienced it to varying degrees but it has always been there. She has never failed to elicit such a response. 

Sometimes it baffles you that not everyone is met with that same experience upon seeing Kuvira. 

When you were caught in the rather unpleasant logistics of wedding planning, you both agreed to walk out together past the Zaofu city gates. Since your lives first interlinked, you have come to exist and approach the world this way: always at each other’s side, whether physically or not. 

But when Kuvira emerges from the room in a flourish of billowing fabric and braided black hair, she is a vision far more radiant than anything you thought you prepared for. Her body is cloaked in a floor-length gown the shade of green sea glass. It’s cinched at the waist with a similarly tinted sash that ties just over her left hip. 

Her arms and shoulders remain unclothed, exposing the lines of sinewy muscle she has been working to recover since returning home. She also started growing out her hair soon after coming back to Zaofu and now it’s nearly at the length as when you first saw her on stage all those years ago. She’s braided it similarly as well. 

Once you’ve more or less collected yourself after the initial shock, you glide over to her and gather her into your arms, melting into her warmth and inhaling her scent. Kuvira stays silent, circling her arms around you to tighten the embrace. 

When you break apart, it’s almost painful until you remember you will have all the hours in the world to feel Kuvira’s skin against yours. Locking your fingers together, you take one long look at Kuvira and you can somehow see everything she feels with striking clarity. 

“Let’s go,” you whisper. Kuvira removes her hand so she can loop her arm into yours, pulling you close to her side, and you make your way past the city gates. 

\---

A small gathering awaits by the river but none of the guests catch your attention. You had dreamt of this day—of this specific moment—for years now, fantasizing over each and every detail from how the sunlight would glisten over the water to how the warm air would caress your face. 

But this is so different from what you had anticipated. It’s better. Spirits, is it so much better.

It’s real. 

The opening remarks transpire quickly, or perhaps it’s your subconscious willing them to do so. When Huan signals you to share your vows, you are momentarily struck with the fear that nothing you say will capture the spectrum of emotions swelling in your chest. 

But you manage to stumble your way through them, recounting some of your favorite memories with Kuvira but above all else, proudly and publicly proclaiming your commitment to her for the rest of your days. You promise to stay by her side for as long as she’ll have you and you hope it’s as long as possible. You promise to protect her, care for her, listen to her, and remind her how much of a light she is in this world, especially on the days when she might not believe it herself. 

When you finish, you’re certain you’ve lost all coherence but it doesn’t matter because you make sense to Kuvira. Even when your words become incomprehensible sounds and the knot in your throat makes it hard to speak, she reads through the chaos and _feels_ exactly what you mean to tell her. 

Then Huan turns to Kuvira with an uncharacteristic grin on their face and she breathes in deeply before looking at you. At first you think she’s just taking in your expression, studying the subtle movements of your lips and your brow. 

But the closer you watch her face, you realize she is looking at some part of you that isn’t physical at all. She’s present in the moment—that much is obvious—but she’s exploring something in you that runs deeper than flesh and skin. It’s that spirit of memory and it contains every image, emotion, and feeling you have experienced with her. 

“I don’t think there is anything I can say that I haven’t already told you in some form or another. You know, I spent hours with Huan and Opal trying to figure out what I could possibly tell you that you don’t already know and I was getting so frustrated. Isn’t that strange? How infinite language seems to be until you’re trying to find a way to tell someone just how much they mean to you?” 

A choked up sigh comes from somewhere behind you but it’s easily brushed aside when Kuvira is looking at you the way she is, her voice tight with a level of intensity she never displays beyond the privacy of your quarters.

“I wish I could tell you how it felt the moment I memorized your smile without realizing it. I wish I could tell you what it was like waking up next to you for the first time ever and thinking that up until that point, I never thought I would be allowed to experience that kind of happiness. There are...feelings you’ve brought out in me that I never even knew existed. And if I did, I was so convinced I wasn’t meant to enjoy them. 

You...you’ve seen parts of me no one has ever seen or will see. You were with me at my lowest point, when I had lost everyone and everything. For a moment, I was terrified that I had lost you too...but even then you stayed. I was ruined and I was trying to understand how I could move forward from something so devastating...but you never let me doubt your commitment to this beautiful creation of ours. 

Not too many weeks after we began our romantic relationship, I realized I had already begun picturing what a future with you would look like. A long, distant future that was totally unknown but the only thing I knew to be true was that you would be in it. With you, it’s never been a question of if. Rather, it’s always been certain. Even in the moments where I gave into some doubt, I never allowed myself to fully believe it. 

I can’t promise you that a future with me will be perfect. You more than anyone should know that’s not possible.”

There are a few scattered chuckles from the crowd which makes Kuvira grin softly and you’re chewing the inside of your cheek in hopes that it will distract you from the tears that threaten to overflow. Her fingers tighten around yours. 

“But I promise you that I will endeavor to give you the best life I possibly can. I want you to feel safe with me, I want you to wake up every morning and immediately know just how much I love you and always will. I promise to continue growing and becoming better because I want to be what I know you deserve. I promise you all of this and so much more that I don’t have the words for, but I will show you every single day in every way I can.”

The moment between her final words and Huan telling you to kiss seems to stretch for far too long until Kuvira _finally_ takes your face in her hands and suddenly you’re overcome by their warmth and the sensation of soft lips against yours. 

The kiss itself lasts no more than five seconds, if not less, but in your mind and in your body it extends beyond that tiny frame of time. It encompasses all the years you’ve spent in Kuvira’s company and all the years to come. You can feel the culmination of many days leading up to this very moment and you can taste the sweet assurance of many more years to come. 

When you part, you take one moment to look at Kuvira’s face. Her hands haven’t moved from your cheeks and she blinks once. 

The barely visible film of moisture coating her eyes speaks of an emotion that is far too immense to express in words so you fold your hands over hers and nod against her touch. 

_It’s okay. I’m here. And I know..._


End file.
